UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND
EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
SCHEDULE
14A
Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section
14(a) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
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[ ] | Definitive Proxy Statement | |
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[ ] | Soliciting Material Pursuant to §240.14a-12 |
Logitech International S.A. |
(Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter) |
(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant) |
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LOGITECH INTERNATIONAL S.A.
INVITATION AND PROXY STATEMENT
FOR THE
2008 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS
July 29, 2008
To our shareholders:
You are cordially invited to attend Logitechs 2008 Annual General Meeting. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 10, 2008 at 10:30 a.m. at the Palais De Beaulieu, Rome Room, in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Enclosed is the Invitation and Proxy Statement for the meeting, which includes an agenda and discussion of the items to be voted on at the meeting, information on how you can exercise your voting rights, information concerning Logitechs compensation of its Board members and executive officers and other relevant information.
Whether or not you plan to attend the Annual General Meeting, your vote is important.
Thank you for your continued support of Logitech.
GUERRINO DE LUCA |
LOGITECH INTERNATIONAL S.A.
Invitation to the Annual General
Meeting
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
10:30 a.m. (registration starts at
9:30 a.m.)
Palais de Beaulieu Lausanne, Switzerland
*****
AGENDA
A. | Reports | ||
Report on Operations for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008 | |||
B. | Proposals | ||
1. | Approval of the Annual Report, the Compensation Report, the consolidated financial statements and the statutory financial statements of Logitech International S.A. for fiscal year 2008 | ||
2. | Appropriation of retained earnings without payment of a dividend | ||
3. | Decrease of conditional capital for employee equity incentive plans | ||
4. | Increase of shares available for issuance under Employee Share Purchase Plans | ||
5. | Authorization of conditional capital for future convertible bond issuance | ||
6. | Approval of the Logitech Management Performance Bonus Plan | ||
7. | Release of the Board of Directors for activities during fiscal year 2008 | ||
8. | Elections to the Board of Directors | ||
8.1. | Election of Gerald Quindlen | ||
8.2. | Election of Richard Laube | ||
8.3. | Re-election of Matthew Bousquette | ||
9. | Re-election of PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. as auditors |
Apples, Switzerland, July 29, 2008
The Board of Directors |
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT THE
LOGITECH
2008 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
GENERAL INFORMATION FOR ALL SHAREHOLDERS
Why am I receiving this Invitation and Proxy Statement?
This document is designed to comply with both Swiss corporate law and U.S. proxy statement rules. Logitech became subject to the U.S. proxy statement rules effective April 1, 2008. Outside of the U.S. and Canada this Invitation and Proxy Statement will be delivered to registered shareholders with certain portions translated into French and German. We made copies of this Invitation and Proxy Statement available to shareholders beginning on July 29, 2008.
Who is entitled to vote at the meeting?
Shareholders registered in the Share Register of Logitech International S.A. (including in the sub-register maintained by Logitechs U.S. transfer agent, The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation) on Friday, September 5, 2008 have the right to vote. No shareholders will be entered in the Share Register between September 8, 2008 and the day following the meeting. As of July 23, 2008 there were [ ] shares registered and entitled to vote out of a total of [ ] Logitech shares outstanding. The actual number of registered shares that will be entitled to vote at the meeting will vary depending on how many more shares are registered, or deregistered, between July 23, 2008 and September 5, 2008.
For information on the criteria for the determination of the U.S. and Canadian street name beneficial owners who may vote with respect to the meeting, please refer to Further Information for U.S. and Canadian Street Name Beneficial Owners, below.
Who is a registered shareholder?
If your shares are registered directly in your name with us in the Share Register of Logitech International S.A., or in our sub-register maintained by our U.S. transfer agent, The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, you are considered a registered shareholder, and this Invitation and Proxy Statement and related materials are being sent to you directly by Logitech.
Who is a beneficial owner with shares registered in the name of a custodian, or street name owner?
Shareholders that have not requested registration on our Share Register directly, and hold shares through a broker, trustee or nominee or other similar organization that is a registered shareholder, are beneficial owners of shares registered in the name of a custodian. If you hold your Logitech shares through a U.S. or Canadian broker, trustee or nominee or other similar organization (also called holding in street name), which is the typical practice of our shareholders in the U.S. and Canada, the organization holding your account is considered the registered shareholder for purposes of voting at the meeting, and this Invitation and Proxy Statement and related materials are being sent or made available to you by them. You have the right to direct that organization on how to vote the shares held in your account.
Why is it important for me to vote?
Logitech is a public company and key decisions can only be made by shareholders. Whether or not you plan to attend, your vote is important so that your shares are represented.
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How many registered shares must be present or represented to conduct business at the meeting?
There is no quorum requirement for the meeting. Under Swiss law, public companies do not have specific quorum requirements for shareholder meetings, and our Articles of Incorporation do not otherwise provide for a quorum requirement.
Where are Logitechs principal executive offices?
Logitechs principal executive office in Switzerland is at Moulin du Choc D, 1122 Romanel-sur-Morges, Switzerland, and our principal executive office in the United States is at 6505 Kaiser Drive, Fremont, California 94555. Logitechs main telephone number in Switzerland is +41-(0)21-863-5111 and our main telephone number in the United States is +510-795-8500.
How can I obtain Logitechs annual report and other annual reporting materials?
A copy of our 2008 Annual Report to Shareholders, this Invitation and Proxy Statement and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for fiscal year 2008 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are available on our website at http://ir.logitech.com. Shareholders also may request free copies of these materials at our principal executive offices in Switzerland or the United States, at the addresses and phone numbers above.
Where can I find the voting results of the meeting?
We intend to announce voting results at the meeting and issue a press release promptly after the meeting. We will also post results on our website at http://ir.logitech.com and in our quarterly report for the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2008.
If I am not a registered shareholder, can I attend and vote at the meeting?
You may not attend the meeting and vote your shares in person at the meeting unless you either become a registered shareholder by September 5, 2008 or you obtain a legal proxy from the broker, trustee or nominee that holds your shares, giving you the right to vote the shares at the meeting. If you hold your shares through a non-U.S. or non-Canadian broker, trustee or nominee, you may become a registered shareholder by contacting our Share Registrar at our principal executive offices in Switzerland, at the above address, and following their registration instructions or, in certain countries, by requesting registration through the bank or brokerage through which you hold your shares. If you hold your shares through a U.S. or Canadian broker, trustee or nominee, you may become a registered shareholder by contacting your broker, trustee or nominee, and following their registration instructions.
FURTHER INFORMATION FOR REGISTERED SHAREHOLDERS
How can I vote if I do not plan to attend the meeting?
If you do not plan to attend the meeting you may mark the applicable box under Option 3 on the enclosed Response Coupon to appoint either Logitech or the Independent Representative, Ms. Béatrice Ehlers, to represent you at the meeting. Please provide your voting instructions by marking the applicable boxes beside the agenda items on the Response Coupon and sign, date and promptly mail your completed Response Coupon using the appropriate enclosed postage paid envelope. If you sign and return the Response Coupon but do not provide voting instructions for some or all agenda items, your voting rights will be exercised in favor of the Proposals of the Board of Directors (the Board). Please refer to the Response Coupon for more instructions.
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How can I attend the meeting?
If you wish to attend the meeting, please mark Option 1 on the Response Coupon, and send the completed, signed and dated Response Coupon to Logitech using the enclosed postage paid envelope by September 2, 2008. We will send an admission card for the meeting to you. If an admission card is not received by you prior to the meeting and you are a registered shareholder as of September 5, 2008, you may attend the meeting by presenting proof of identification at the meeting.
Can I have another person represent me at the meeting?
Yes. If you would like someone other than either Logitech or the Independent Representative to represent you at the meeting, please mark Option 2 on the Response Coupon and provide the name and address of the person you want to represent you. Please return the completed, signed and dated Response Coupon to Logitech using the enclosed postage paid envelope by September 2, 2008. We will send an admission card for the meeting to your representative. If the name and address instructions you provide are not clear Logitech will send the admission card to you, and you must forward it to your representative.
Can I sell my shares before the meeting if I have voted?
Logitech does not block the transfer of shares before the meeting. However, if you sell your Logitech shares before the meeting and Logitechs share registrar is notified of the sale, your votes with those shares will not be counted. Any person who purchases shares after the share register closes on Friday, September 5, 2008 will not be able to register them until the day after the meeting and so will not be able to vote the shares at the meeting.
If I vote by proxy using the Response Coupon, can I change my vote after I have voted?
You may change your vote at any time before the final vote at the meeting. You may revoke your vote by requesting a new Response Coupon from us, and we will cancel your prior Response Coupon. If you wish to vote again you may complete the new Response Coupon and return it to us, or you may attend the meeting and vote in person. However, your attendance at the meeting will not automatically revoke your Response Coupon unless you vote again at the meeting or specifically request in writing that your prior Response Coupon be revoked.
If I vote by proxy using the Response Coupon, what happens if I do not give specific voting instructions?
If you are a registered shareholder and sign and return a Response Coupon without giving specific voting instructions for some or all agenda items, your voting rights will be exercised in favor of the Proposals of the Board of Directors. In addition, if you provide discretionary voting instructions in the Response Coupon, and other matters are properly presented for voting at the meeting, your voting rights will be exercised in favor of the recommendations of the Board of Directors at the meeting on such matters.
In addition, if your shares are represented at the meeting by an institution subject to the Swiss Federal Law on Banks and Savings Institutions, or by a professional asset manager subject to Swiss jurisdiction, and if you do not provide the institution or asset manager with general or specific voting instructions, the institution or asset manager will be obliged under Swiss law to exercise the voting rights of your shares in the manner recommended by the Board of Directors.
Who can I contact if I have questions?
If you have any questions or need assistance in voting your shares, please call us at +1-510-713-4220 or e-mail us at investorrelations@logitech.com.
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FURTHER INFORMATION FOR U.S. OR CANADIAN STREET NAME BENEFICIAL OWNERS
Why did I receive a one-page notice in the mail regarding the Internet availability of proxy materials this year instead of a full set of proxy materials?
Pursuant to new rules recently adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, we have elected to provide access to our proxy materials over the Internet to beneficial owners holding their shares in street name through a U.S. or Canadian broker, trustee or nominee. Accordingly, such brokers, trustees or nominees are forwarding a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials (the Notice) to such beneficial owners. All such shareholders will have the ability to access the proxy materials on a website referred to in the Notice or request to receive a printed set of the proxy materials. Instructions on how to access the proxy materials over the Internet or to request a printed copy may be found on the Notice. In addition, beneficial owners holding their shares in street name through a U.S. or Canadian broker, trustee or nominee may request to receive proxy materials in printed form by mail or electronically by email on an ongoing basis.
How can I get electronic access to the proxy materials?
The Notice will provide you with instructions regarding how to:
Choosing to receive your future proxy materials by email will save us the cost of printing and mailing documents to you and will reduce the impact of our annual shareholders meetings on the environment. If you choose to receive future proxy materials by email, you will receive an email next year with instructions containing a link to those materials and a link to the proxy voting site. Your election to receive proxy materials by email will remain in effect until you terminate it.
Who may provide voting instructions for the meeting?
For purposes of U.S. or Canadian beneficial shareholder voting, shareholders holding shares through a U.S. or Canadian broker, trustee or nominee organization on July 23, 2008 may direct the organization on how to vote. Logitech has made arrangements with a service company to U.S. and Canadian brokers, trustees and nominee organizations for that service company to provide a reconciliation of share positions of U.S. and Canadian street name beneficial owners between July 23, 2008 and August 28, 2008, which Logitech determined is the last practicable date before the meeting for such a reconciliation. These arrangements are intended to result in the following adjustments: If a U.S. or Canadian street name beneficial owner as of July 23, 2008 votes but subsequently sells their shares before August 28, 2008, their votes will be cancelled. A U.S. or Canadian street name beneficial owner as of July 23, 2008 that has voted and subsequently increases or decreases their shareholdings but remains a beneficial owner as of August 28, 2008 will have their votes increased or decreased to reflect their shareholdings as of August 28, 2008.
If you acquire Logitech shares in street name after July 23, 2008 through a U.S. or Canadian broker, trustee or nominee, and wish to vote at the meeting or provide voting instructions by proxy, you must become a registered shareholder. You may become a registered shareholder by contacting your broker, trustee or nominee, and following their registration instructions. In order to allow adequate time for registration, for proxy materials to be sent to you, and for your voting instructions to be returned to us before the meeting, please begin the registration process as far before September 5, 2008 as possible.
If I am U.S. or Canadian street name beneficial owner, how do I vote?
If you are a beneficial owner of shares held in street name and you wish to vote in person at the meeting, you must obtain a valid proxy from the organization that holds your shares.
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If you do not wish to vote in person, you may vote by proxy. You may vote by proxy over the Internet, or if you request printed copies of the proxy materials by mail, you can also vote by mail or by telephone by following the instructions provided in the Notice.
What happens if I do not give specific voting instructions?
If you are a beneficial owner of shares held in street name in the United States or Canada and do not provide your broker, trustee or nominee with specific voting instructions, then under the rules of various national and regional securities exchanges, your broker, trustee or nominee may generally vote on routine matters but cannot vote on non-routine matters. If the organization that holds your shares does not receive instructions from you on how to vote your shares on a non-routine matter, your shares will not be voted on such matter and will not be considered votes cast on the applicable Proposal. We encourage you to provide voting instructions to the organization that holds your shares by carefully following the instructions provided in the Notice. We believe the following Proposals will be considered non-routine: Proposal 2 (Appropriation of retained earnings without payment of a dividend), Proposal 4 (Increase of shares available for issuance under Employee Share Purchase Plans) and Proposal 5 (Authorization of conditional capital for future convertible bond issuance). All other Proposals involve matters that we believe will be considered routine. Any broker non-votes on any Proposals will not be considered votes cast on the Proposal.
What is the deadline for delivering my voting instructions?
If you hold your shares through a U.S. or Canadian bank or brokerage or other custodian you have until 11:59 pm (U.S. Eastern Daylight Time) on September 8, 2008 to deliver your voting instructions.
Can I change my vote after I have voted?
You may revoke your proxy and change your vote at any time before the final vote at the meeting. You may vote again on a later date on the Internet or by telephone (only your latest Internet or telephone proxy submitted prior to the meeting will be counted), or by signing and returning a new proxy card with a later date, or by attending the meeting and voting in person, if you have a legal proxy that allows you to attend the meeting and vote. However, your attendance at the Annual General Meeting will not automatically revoke your proxy unless you vote again at the meeting or specifically request in writing that your prior proxy be revoked.
FURTHER INFORMATION FOR SHAREHOLDERS WITH SHARES REGISTERED THROUGH A BANK OR BROKERAGE AS CUSTODIAN (OUTSIDE THE U.S. OR CANADA)
How do I vote by proxy if my shares are registered through my bank or brokerage as custodian?
Your broker, trustee or nominee should have enclosed or provided voting instructions for you to use in directing the broker, trustee or nominee how to vote your shares. If you did not receive such instructions you must contact your bank or brokerage for their voting instructions.
What is the deadline for delivering my voting instructions if my Logitech shares are registered through my bank or brokerage as custodian?
Banks and brokerages typically set deadlines for receiving instructions from their account holders. Outside of the U.S. and Canada, this deadline is two to three days before the deadline of the company holding the general meeting. This is so that the custodians can collect the voting instructions and pass them onto the company holding the meeting. If you hold Logitech shares through a bank or brokerage outside the U.S. or Canada please check with your bank or brokerage for their specific voting deadline and submit your voting instructions to them as far before the meeting date as possible.
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OTHER MEETING INFORMATION
Further Information for Depositary representatives
Institutions subject to the Swiss Federal Law on Banks and Savings Banks, as well as professional asset managers, are obliged to inform Logitech of the number and par value of the registered shares they represent.
Meeting Proposals
There are no other matters that the Board intends to present, or has reason to believe others will present, at the Annual General Meeting. If other matters are properly presented for voting at the meeting, and you have provided discretionary voting instructions in the Response Coupon or your voting instruction card, your shares will be voted in accordance with the recommendations of the Board of Directors at the meeting on such matters.
Proxy Solicitation
We will bear the expense of soliciting proxies, and we have retained Georgeson Inc. to solicit proxies for a fee of $15,000 plus a reasonable amount to cover expenses. Certain of our directors, officers and other employees, without additional compensation, may also solicit proxies personally or in writing, by telephone, e-mail or otherwise, or we may ask our proxy solicitor to solicit votes and proxies on our behalf by telephone for a fee of $5.00 per phone call, plus reasonable expenses. In the United States we are required to request that brokers and nominees who hold shares in their names furnish our proxy material to the beneficial owners of the shares, and we must reimburse such brokers and nominees for the expenses of doing so in accordance with certain U.S. statutory fee schedules.
Tabulation of Votes
Representatives of at least two Swiss banks will serve as scrutineers of the vote tabulations at the meeting. As is typical for Swiss companies, our Share Registrar will tabulate the voting instructions of registered shareholders that are provided in advance of the meeting.
Shareholder Proposals and Nominees
Shareholder Proposals for 2008 Annual General Meeting
Under our Articles of Incorporation, one or more registered shareholders who together represent shares representing at least the lesser of (i) one percent of our issued share capital or (ii) an aggregate par value of one million Swiss francs may demand that an item be placed on the agenda of a meeting of shareholders. Any such proposal must be included by the Board in our materials for the meeting. A request to place an item on the meeting agenda must be in writing, describe the proposal and be received by our Board of Directors at least 60 days prior to the date of the meeting. The deadline to receive proposals for the agenda for the September 10, 2008 Annual General Meeting was July 11, 2008. However, under Swiss law registered shareholders, or persons holding a valid proxy from a registered shareholder, may propose alternatives to items on the 2008 Annual General Meeting agenda before or at the meeting.
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Shareholder Proposals for 2009 Annual General Meeting
A registered shareholder that satisfies the minimum shareholding requirements in the Companys Articles of Incorporation may demand that an item be placed on the agenda for our 2009 meeting of shareholders by delivering a written request describing the proposal to the Secretary of Logitech at our principal executive office in either Switzerland or the United States no later than July 2, 2009. In addition, if you are a registered shareholder and satisfy the shareholding requirements under Rule 14a-8 of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the Exchange Act), you may submit a proposal for consideration by the Board of Directors for inclusion in the 2009 Annual General Meeting agenda by delivering a request and a description of the proposal to the Secretary of Logitech at our principal executive office in either Switzerland or the United States no later than May 2, 2009. The proposal will need to comply with Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act, which lists the requirements for the inclusion of shareholder proposals in company-sponsored proxy materials under U.S. securities laws. Under the Companys Articles of Incorporation only registered shareholders are recognized as Logitech shareholders. As a result, if you are not a registered shareholder you may not make proposals for the 2009 Annual General Meeting.
Nominations of Director Candidates
Nominations of director candidates by registered shareholders must follow the rules for shareholder proposals above.
Provisions of Articles of Incorporation
The relevant provisions of our Articles of Incorporation regarding the right of one or more registered shareholders who together represent shares representing at least the lesser of (i) one percent of our issued share capital or (ii) an aggregate par value of one million Swiss francs to demand that an item be placed on the agenda of a meeting of shareholders are available on our website at http://ir.logitech.com. You may also contact the Secretary of Logitech at our principal executive office in either Switzerland or the United States to request a copy of the relevant provisions of our Articles of Incorporation.
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AGENDA PROPOSALS AND EXPLANATIONS
A. REPORTS
Report on Operations for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2008
Senior management of Logitech International S.A. will provide the Annual General Meeting with a presentation and report on operations of the Company for fiscal year 2008.
B. PROPOSALS
Proposal 1
Approval of the Annual Report, the Compensation Report, the Consolidated Financial Statements and the Statutory Financial Statements of Logitech International S.A. for Fiscal Year 2008
Proposal
The Board of Directors proposes that the Annual Report, the Compensation Report, the consolidated financial statements and the statutory financial statements of Logitech International S.A. for fiscal year 2008 be approved.
Explanation
The Logitech consolidated financial statements and the statutory financial statements of Logitech International S.A. for fiscal year 2008 are contained in Logitechs Annual Report which was distributed to all registered shareholders with this Invitation and Proxy Statement. The Annual Report also contains the report of Logitechs auditors, the report of the statutory auditors and additional information on the Companys business, organization and strategy, and information relating to corporate governance as required by the SWX Swiss Exchange directive on corporate governance. The Compensation Report is included in this Invitation and Proxy Statement. Copies of the Annual Report and the Invitation and Proxy Statement are available on the Internet at ir.logitech.com.
Under Swiss law the annual report and financial statements of Swiss companies must be submitted to shareholders for approval or disapproval at each annual general meeting. The submission of the compensation report to a vote of shareholders as part of the approval of the annual report is a suggested best practice under applicable Swiss best corporate governance principles published by economiesuisse, a leading Swiss business organization. The Board of Directors is submitting the Compensation Report to shareholders with the Annual Report and financial statements in light of these best practice recommendations.
In the event of a negative vote on this proposal by shareholders the Board of Directors will call an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders for re-consideration of this proposal by shareholders. Approval of this proposal does not constitute approval or disapproval of any of the individual matters referred to in the Annual Report, the Compensation Report, or the consolidated or statutory financial statements for fiscal year 2008.
PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A., as Logitech consolidated and statutory auditors, issued an unqualified recommendation to the Annual General Meeting that the Logitech consolidated and Logitech International S.A. financial statements be approved. As Logitech auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. confirm that the consolidated financial statements give a true and fair view of the financial position, the results of operations and the cash flows in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America and comply with Swiss law. As statutory auditors, PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. express their opinion that the accounting records and financial statements and the proposed appropriation of available earnings comply with Swiss law and the companys articles of incorporation.
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Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions.
Recommendation
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR approval of the Annual Report, the Compensation Report, the consolidated financial statements and the statutory financial statements of Logitech International S.A. for fiscal year 2008.
Proposal 2
Appropriation of Retained Earnings Without Payment of a Dividend
Proposal
The Board of Directors proposes that no dividend be distributed with respect to retained earnings for fiscal year 2008 and that CHF 316,586,000 (US $310,570,866 based on exchange rates on June 30, 2008) of retained earnings be carried forward.
(all numbers in thousands) | |||
Retained earnings at beginning of fiscal year 2008 | CHF | 378,300 | |
Appropriation of retained earnings resolved by | |||
the 2007 Annual General Meeting- Dividend | CHF | | |
Attribution to reserve for treasury shares | CHF | (127,866 | ) |
Net income for fiscal year 2008 | CHF | 66,152 | |
Retained earnings at the disposal of the Annual | |||
General Meeting at the end of fiscal year 2008 | CHF | 316,586 |
Explanation
Under Swiss law the use of retained earnings must be submitted to shareholders for approval or disapproval at each annual general meeting. The retained earnings at the disposal of Logitech shareholders at the 2008 Annual General Meeting are the earnings of Logitech International S.A., the Logitech parent holding company.
The Board of Directors continues to believe that it is in the best interests of Logitech and its shareholders to retain Logitechs earnings for future investment in the growth of Logitechs business, for share repurchases, and for the possible acquisition of other companies or lines of business. Accordingly, the Board is proposing that no dividend be paid to shareholders and all retained earnings at the disposal of the Annual General Meeting be carried forward.
In the event of a negative vote on this proposal by shareholders, the Board of Directors will take the vote of the shareholders into consideration, and call an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders for re-consideration by shareholders of this proposal or a revised proposal.
Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions.
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Recommendation
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR approval of the appropriation of retained earnings without the payment of a dividend.
Proposal 3
Decrease of Conditional Capital for Employee Equity Incentive Plans
Proposal
The Board of Directors proposes that the shareholders approve an amendment to the Articles of Incorporation to decrease the amount of conditional capital reserved for potential issuance on the exercise of rights granted under the Companys employee equity incentive plans from the current CHF 15,165,465 representing 60,661,860 shares to CHF 6,250,000 representing 25,000,000 shares.
Explanation
Under Swiss corporate law the total nominal par value of the shares authorized by shareholders for future issuance on the conversion or exercise of derivative securities issued by a company is referred to as conditional share capital. A Swiss company must have sufficient shares available, either through conditional capital, treasury shares, or a combination of the two, to cover any conversion rights under derivative securities at the time the securities are issued.
Logitech currently has conditional share capital in an amount representing 60,661,860 shares to cover share issuances under our employee equity incentive plans. The Board of Directors has determined that this large amount of conditional capital to cover employee equity incentives is not necessary, and can be significantly reduced without impacting the ability of the Company to maintain employee equity incentive plans in order to help attract, retain and motivate the high level of employees and executives necessary to continue to grow Logitechs business. The Board has determined that it is in the best interests of shareholders to significantly reduce the current conditional capital. The proposed reduction will limit the potential dilution to shareholders from employee equity incentive plans.
The Company has not issued any shares from this conditional capital since 2000. Instead, Logitech has used shares held in treasury from its share repurchase programs to cover its issuance obligations under employee equity incentives grants. It expects to continue to do so. However, the Board believes it is important to retain an amount of conditional capital sufficient to at least cover outstanding employee equity incentives, plus some margin for future grants, in order to provide the flexibility for the Companys treasury shares to be used as potential consideration in any future acquisitions.
As of June 30, 2008 there were approximately 17.03 million Logitech stock options outstanding issued to employees under our 1996 Stock Plan and our 2006 Stock Incentive Plan, and approximately 8.22 million shares remaining for issuance under our 2006 Stock Incentive Plan. In addition, there were approximately 0.94 million shares remaining for purchase under our Employee Share Purchase Plans, with approximately 0.66 million shares expected to be remaining for purchase by the September 2008 Annual General Meeting. If the proposal to increase the number of shares available for issuance under the ESPPs by 4 million shares in Proposal 4 below is approved by shareholders, there will be approximately 4.94 million shares available for issuance under the ESPPs. The total amount of shares that may be issued under the Companys employee equity incentive plans is set out in the following table:
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(as of June 30, 2008) | ||
Outstanding stock options under 1996 Stock Plan and 2006 Stock Incentive Plan | 17.03 million | |
Shares available for grant under the 2006 Stock Incentive Plan | 8.22 million | |
Shares available for purchase under Employee Share Purchase Plans | 0.94 million | |
New shares if ESPP increase Proposal is approved | 4.00 million | |
Maximum shares outstanding or available for grant under employee equity incentive plans | 30.19 million |
Although the theoretical maximum number of shares that may be issued under the Companys employee equity incentive plans is greater than 25 million, the Board does not reasonably expect the actual number of shares subject to outstanding employee equity incentives to be greater than 25 million, based on the Companys current business and expectations. This is because the number of previously-issued equity incentive grants is reduced over time through employee exercises, forfeitures or expirations, with new grants adding to the number of outstanding equity incentives. As a result, the amount of conditional capital for potential issuances under employee equity incentive plans may be reduced as proposed.
If this proposal to reduce the conditional capital for employee equity incentive plans is approved the title of Title VII of the Companys Articles of Incorporation will be amended and the current Article 26 will be amended and re-numbered as Article 25, as follows:
Current version | Proposed new version (changes in italics) | |
Title VII | Title VII | |
Authorized and Conditional Capital | Conditional Capital | |
Article 26 |
Article 25 | |
Article 26 para.
2 |
Article 25 para.
2 |
Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions.
Recommendation
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR approval of the amendment of the Companys Articles of Incorporation to decrease the conditional capital for employee equity incentive plans as proposed.
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Proposal 4
Increase to the Number of Shares Available for Issuance under Employee Share Purchase Plans
Proposal
The Board of Directors proposes that an additional total of 4,000,000 shares be authorized for issuance under the Companys 1996 Employee Share Purchase Plan (U.S.) and the 2006 Employee Share Purchase Plan (Non-U.S.).
Explanation
Logitechs Employee Share Purchase Plans encourage share ownership by employees and align the interests of employees and shareholders. The Board believes that the continued ability to offer this program is important to attract, motivate and retain the employee talent needed for Logitechs success.
The 1996 Employee Share Purchase Plan (U.S.) (1996 Plan) and the 2006 Employee Share Purchase Plan (Non-U.S.) (2006 Plan, and together with the 1996 Plan, the ESPPs) offer eligible employees the opportunity to acquire Logitech shares through periodic payroll deductions that are applied toward the purchase of shares, at a discount from the current market price. The primary purpose of these plans is to provide employees with the opportunity to acquire an ownership stake in Logitech. Copies of the 1996 ESPP and the 2006 ESPP are available as exhibits to our Form S-8 POS filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 2, 2007, available at http://www.sec.gov.
We estimate that at the time of our 2008 Annual General Meeting, we will have approximately 660,000 shares remaining for issuance under the ESPPs of the 12,000,000 previously authorized by shareholders. We estimate that we will sell almost all of the remaining available shares by the 2009 Annual General Meeting. If sales under the ESPPs increase above our estimates the current pool of ESPP shares will be exhausted before the 2009 Annual General Meeting. As a result, the Board is seeking shareholder approval to increase the number of shares available under the ESPPs at the 2008 Annual General Meeting. The increase of 4 million shares should provide sufficient shares to meet expected sales under the ESPPs over the next five to six years. The table below sets out the shares currently available under the ESPPs and if this proposal is approved.
Stock Purchase Plan Share Reservation | |||
Maximum shares available under the ESPPs | 12.00 million | ||
Estimated shares purchased from 1996 through September 2008 | (11.34 million | ) | |
Estimated shares available under the ESPPs as of September 2008 | 0.66 million | ||
New shares if increase Proposal is approved | 4.00 million | ||
Maximum shares available for issuance under the ESPPs | 4.66 million |
Background on Share Purchase Plans at Logitech
The 1996 Plan was adopted by the Board of Directors on April 24, 1996 as a worldwide Employee Share Purchase Plan and was last approved by Logitechs shareholders on June 27, 2002. The 1996 Plan was split into one plan for employees based in the United States and another plan for employees based outside of the United States by action of the Board of Directors on June 15, 2006.
Employees have been participating in our share purchase plans for more than 12 years. Participation is voluntary and participating employees make contributions through payroll deductions. In the offering period ended January 31, 2008 more than 71% of Logitechs eligible employees participated (approximately 1,725 out of 2,420 eligible employees). A direct result of this high participation level is an increase in broad-based ownership, with 99.3% of the shares issued going to non-executive officers in the last two offering periods.
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Under the ESPPs employees may purchase shares twice a year at the end of each six-month offering period. The purchase price is 85% of the market value of Logitech shares on the first day of the six-month offering period or 85% of the market value of the shares on the last day of the offering period if that value is lower. Employees are able to contribute up to 10% of their annual salary, up to a $25,000 per year limit calculated in accordance with U.S. tax rules. The majority of companies with which we compete for talent in the United States offer share purchase programs to their employees. Outside of the United States we believe our share purchase plan helps set us apart from other companies with which we compete for talent, because we believe that share purchase plans similar to ours are not as common as they are in the United States.
In fiscal year 2008, 538,411 shares (462,845 in fiscal year 2007 and 585,824 in fiscal year 2006) were issued from the ESPPs, resulting in an annual dilution cost of 0.30% (0.25% in fiscal year 2007 and 0.33% in fiscal year 2006). Annual dilution equals shares issued divided by the average shares outstanding in the applicable fiscal year. We expect the approval of an additional 4 million shares under the ESPPs, when combined with the remaining shares under the ESPPs as of September 2008, to result in an approximate 2.6% dilution over the life of the plans.
Key Terms
Only the number of shares available for issuance under the ESPPs will change if this proposal is approved by shareholders. All other terms of the ESPPs will remain unchanged. For convenience, the key terms of the ESPPs are summarized below.
Eligibility
Employees of certain of Logitechs subsidiaries are eligible to participate in the ESPPs. The subsidiaries whose employees are entitled to participate may be changed from time to time by Logitech. Employees of Logitech who regularly work 20 hours or more per week and five months or more per year, subject to applicable law, are eligible to participate in the ESPPs. Logitech may establish administrative rules requiring that employees deliver subscriptions for shares some minimum period (currently, 7 days) before an enrollment period begins. As of June 30, 2008, approximately 2,535 employees were eligible to participate in the ESPPs.
Employees are not eligible to participate in the ESPPs if they would immediately after such purchase own (directly or indirectly) shares, which when added to shares that the employees may purchase under outstanding options, amounts to 5% or more of the total combined voting power of shares of Logitech.
Enrollment and Participation
An eligible employee who wants to enroll and participate in the ESPPs must file a completed subscription agreement (which includes a payroll deduction agreement) with Logitech during an enrollment period. The subscription agreement authorizes Logitech to withhold automatically a percentage of the participants regular earnings through regular payroll deductions, and the amount of the deduction is credited to an ESPP account in the participants name on Logitechs books during the offering period. The minimum deduction allowed is 1% of compensation, and the maximum deduction is 10% of regular earnings. No interest is paid or credited with respect to such payroll deductions.
Participants may decrease, but may not increase, their rate of contribution during an offering period by filing a new subscription agreement. If a participant has not followed these procedures to change the rate of contribution, the rate of contribution continues at the originally elected rate throughout the offering period and future offering periods. Participants may change their rate of contribution for the next offering period by filing an amended subscription agreement during the enrollment periods.
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Administration
The Board, or a committee of the Board (Board), administers the ESPP. The Board may interpret the ESPPs and establish, amend and rescind any rules related to the ESPPs.
Offering periods
The ESPPs have a series of six-month offering periods, with new offering periods commencing on each February 1 and August 1, and ending on the last trading day in the six-month periods ending on the following July 31 and January 31, respectively, or on such other date as the Board shall determine. The Board has the authority to change the frequency and/or duration of offering periods (including the commencement dates of the offering periods).
Purchase of Shares
On the last day of each offering period, all participants purchase the number of whole shares obtained by dividing the aggregate amount in their ESPP accounts by the purchase price for that offering period. No fractional shares are credited or issued. The purchase price for an offering period is 85% of the market value of Logitech shares on the first day of the six-month offering period or 85% of the market value of the shares on the last day of the offering period if that value is lower. Market value is the last quoted price on the applicable date. The Board may change the percentage of market value applied to determine the purchase price with respect to any future offering period, but not below 85%. If the aggregate number of shares subscribed for in any offering period exceeds the number of shares that remain available for sale under the ESPPs, the number of shares each participant may purchase is proportionately reduced.
Transferability
Participants may not transfer their subscription or other rights under the ESPPs to any other person, except by will or the laws of descent, and any attempted transfer will be void.
Withdrawal
During an offering period, participants may withdraw from participation in the ESPPs by giving notice to Logitech. Upon withdrawal from participation, the balance in the participants ESPP account is refunded to him or her in cash without interest, his or her right to participate in the current offering period is automatically terminated, and no further payroll deductions for the purchase of shares will be made during the offering period.
Adjustments
The number of shares subject to the ESPPs, and the number of shares subject to, and the purchase price of, outstanding rights to purchase shares, will be proportionately adjusted in the event of changes in the outstanding shares of Logitech by reason of share dividends, share splits, consolidations, recapitalizations, reorganizations or similar events.
Amendment and Termination of the ESPPs
The Board may amend or terminate the ESPPs at any time without notice, provided that no amendment may be adopted without the approval of the shareholders where shareholder approval is required under applicable law.
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U.S. Tax Consequences
The federal tax rules applicable to the 1996 ESPP under the U.S. Tax Code are summarized below. This summary does not include the tax laws of any municipality, state or country outside the United States in which a participant resides.
No taxable income is recognized by a participant either at the time a right is granted to purchase shares under the 1996 ESPP or at the time shares are purchased thereunder. If a participant does not dispose of shares acquired under the 1996 ESPP before two years after the date of grant (which for each offering period is the last day on which shares are traded before the enrollment period preceding that offering period), upon such qualifying disposition the lesser of (a) the excess of the amount realized on sale of the shares over the purchase price or (b) 15% of the market value of the shares on the date of grant will be subject to federal income tax. Federal long-term capital gain tax will apply to the excess, if any, of the sales proceeds on the date of disposition over the sum of the purchase price and the amount of ordinary income recognized upon disposition. If the qualifying disposition produces a loss (the value of the shares on the date of disposition is less than the purchase price), no ordinary income will be recognized and federal long-term capital loss will apply, provided that the disposition involves certain unrelated parties.
If a participant disposes of the shares earlier than two years after the date of grant, upon such disqualifying disposition the difference between the purchase price and the market value of the shares on the date of purchase (the last day of an offering period) will be taxed to the participant as ordinary income and will be deductible by Logitech. The excess, if any, of the sale proceeds over the market value of the shares on the date of purchase will be taxed as long-term or short-term capital gain, depending on the holding period. Logitech is not entitled to a U.S. tax deduction for amounts taxed as ordinary income or capital gains to a participant, except to the extent that ordinary income is recognized by a participant upon a disposition of shares earlier than two years after the date of grant.
Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions.
Recommendation of the Board
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR approval of the increase of shares available for purchase under the ESPPs.
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Proposal 5
Authorization of Conditional Capital for Future Convertible Bond Issuance
Proposal
The Board proposes that shareholders authorize an amendment to the Companys Articles of Incorporation to create conditional capital representing the issuance of up to 25 million shares to cover any conversion rights under a future convertible bond issuance.
Explanation
Under Swiss corporate law the total nominal par value of the shares authorized by shareholders for future issuance on the conversion or exercise of derivative securities issued by a company is referred to as conditional share capital. A Swiss company must have sufficient shares available, either through conditional capital, treasury shares, or a combination of the two, to cover any conversion rights under derivative securities at the time the securities are issued.
The Board is proposing that shareholders authorize the creation of conditional capital in an amount of CHF 6,250,000, representing 25 million shares, to cover any conversion rights under a future convertible bond issuance. The Board has no present intention to issue convertible bonds. However, it is seeking this conditional capital at this time in order to provide financing flexibility for future expansion, investments or acquisitions.
Under the proposal the Board of Directors may limit or withdraw the shareholders right to subscribe for the bonds by preference for valid reasons, in particular (a) if the bonds are issued in connection with the financing or refinancing of the acquisition of one or more companies, businesses or parts of businesses, or (b) to facilitate the placement of the bonds on the international markets or to increase the security holder base of the Company. However, if the shareholders right to subscribe for the bonds by preference is limited or withdrawn, the bonds must be issued at market conditions, the exercise period of the conversion rights must not exceed 7 (seven) years from the date of issuance of the bonds, and the conversion price must be set at a level that is not lower than the market price of the shares preceding the determination of the final conditions for the bonds. Otherwise, the terms of any future convertible bond issuance, including interest rates, conversion prices, redemption prices, maturity dates, and other similar matters will be determined by the Board of Directors. If the proposal is approved no further authorization from the shareholders will be necessary or solicited prior to an issuance of convertible bonds within the limits under the proposal.
If this proposal is approved, and shareholders also approve Proposal 2 to reduce the conditional capital for employee equity incentive plans, the total of the issued, authorized and conditional capital for the Company will be significantly reduced over that in the Companys Articles of Incorporation after the 2006 Annual General Meeting, when approval from the shareholders for authorized capital was most recently sought. The table below compares the total capital of the Company after the 2006 Annual General Meeting and the 2008 Annual General Meeting, if all proposals are approved as proposed:
Shares Represented by Capital
After 2006 AGM | After 2008 AGM(1) | ||||||
Ordinary capital (issued shares) | 191,606,620 | 191,606,620 | |||||
Authorized capital | 40,000,000 | 0 | |||||
First conditional capital | |||||||
(employee equity incentive plans) | 60,661,860 | 25,000,000 | |||||
Second conditional capital (convertible bonds) | 10,900,000 | (2) | 25,000,000 | ||||
Total | 303,168,480 | 241,606,620 |
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(1) | Assumes all proposals approved, and authorized amendments filed with the Commercial Register in the Canton of Vaud, Switzerland. | |
(2) | Authorized by shareholders in June 2001 for convertible bonds issued to partly finance the purchase of Labtec. The conversion obligations were satisfied through the transfer of treasury shares, and the convertible capital was consequently cancelled by action of the Board in June 2007. | |
If this proposal is approved the Companys Articles of Incorporation will be amended to insert the following as Article 26: |
Article 26
By the exercise of conversion rights which are granted in relation with the issue of convertible bonds, the share capital of the Company shall be increased by a maximum aggregate amount of CHF 6,250,000 (six million, two hundred fifty thousand Swiss Francs) through the issuance to the holders of such bonds of a maximum of 25,000,000 (twenty-five million) fully paid-in registered shares with a nominal value of CHF 0.25 (twenty-five centimes) each.
The shareholders shall not have the right to subscribe by preference for the shares issuable on conversion of the bonds.
The Board of Directors may limit or withdraw the shareholders right to subscribe for the bonds by preference for valid reasons, in particular (a) if the bonds are issued in connection with the financing or refinancing of the acquisition of one or more companies, businesses or parts of businesses, or (b) to facilitate the placement of the bonds on the international markets or to increase the security holder base of the Company.
If the shareholders right to subscribe for the bonds by preference is limited or withdrawn, the bonds must be issued at market conditions, the exercise period of the conversion rights must not exceed 7 (seven) years from the date of issuance of the bonds, and the conversion price must be set at a level that is not lower than the market price of the shares preceding the determination of the final conditions for the bonds.
Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of two-thirds of the votes represented in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting. On this proposal abstentions are not treated as votes cast affirmatively or negatively, but are treated as votes represented in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting only for the purpose of calculating the two-thirds of affirmative votes needed for shareholder approval of the proposal.
Recommendation
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR approval of an amendment to the Companys Articles of Incorporation to create conditional capital for convertible bonds as proposed.
Proposal 6
Approval of the Logitech Management Performance Bonus Plan
Proposal
The Board proposes that shareholders approve the Logitech Management Performance Bonus Plan as it applies to Logitech executive officers.
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Explanation
The Compensation Committee of the Board has adopted a new Logitech Management Performance Bonus Plan (the Bonus Plan). The adoption of the Bonus Plan as it applies to Logitech executive officers is subject to the approval of the shareholders at the 2008 Annual General Meeting. The Board is asking shareholders to approve the adoption of the Bonus Plan so that Logitech may use the Bonus Plan to help increase shareholder value and the success of the Company and its subsidiaries by further motivating participants to achieve excellent short- and long-term financial performance for Logitech, and also receive a U.S. federal income tax deduction for certain compensation paid under the Bonus Plan.
If shareholders do not ratify the adoption of the Bonus Plan, it will not become effective with respect to our executive officers, but will remain effective with respect to other Logitech employees that hold the title of Director or above. Our executive officers are our Chairman, our Chief Executive Officer, our Chief Financial Officer, our Executive Vice President, Products, our Senior Vice President, Customer Experience and Chief Marketing Officer, and our Senior Vice President, Operations.
The following paragraphs provide a summary of the principal features of the Bonus Plan and its operation. A copy of the Bonus Plan is available on our Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 13, 2008, available at http://www.sec.gov.
Purpose of the Bonus Plan
The purpose of the Bonus Plan is to increase shareholder value and the success of Logitech by further motivating participants to achieve excellent short- and long-term financial performance for Logitech and its business units. The Plans goals are to be achieved by providing management with incentive awards based on the achievement of goals relating to the performance of Logitech.
Administration of the Bonus Plan
The Compensation Committee administers the Bonus Plan with respect to Logitech executive officers, and the Chief Executive Officer or the Vice President Human Resources may administer the Bonus Plan with respect to Logitech employees other than executive officers (the Administrator). The Administrator may delegate its authority to individual directors or employees of Logitech, although the Compensation Committee may not delegate its authority as Administrator with respect to Logitech executive officers.
Subject to the terms of the Bonus Plan, the Administrator has sole discretion to:
Eligibility to Participate
The Bonus Plan applies to employees of Logitech at the level of director and higher who are selected for participation by the Administrator. For the plan year 2009 there were 181 employees that were not executive officers that were selected to participate in the Bonus Plan as of June 30, 2008. The actual number of employees who will be eligible to receive an award during any future plan year cannot be determined in advance, because the Administrator has the discretion to select the participants for each performance period.
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Performance Periods
Performance periods may consist of a fiscal year or a longer or shorter period.
Awards and Performance Goals
Under the Bonus Plan, participants will be eligible to receive an award based on performance against goals determined by the Administrator. For Logitech executive officers performance goals for fiscal year 2009 performance periods are based on net sales and operating income for Logitech as a whole or for the business or functional unit over which the executive has responsibility, or both. However, under the Bonus Plan the Administrator may choose from a variety of performance goals in its discretion. The possible performance goals under the Bonus Plan include the following: (i) brand recognition/acceptance, (ii) cash flow, (iii) cash flow return on investment, (iv) contribution to profitability, (v) cost control, (vi) cost positions, (vii) cost of capital, (viii) customer satisfaction, (ix) development of products, (x) earnings before interest, taxes and amortization, (xi) earnings per share, (xii) economic profit, (xiii) economic value added, (xiv) free cash flow, (xv) income or net income, (xvi) income before income taxes, (xvii) market segment share, (xviii) new product innovation, (xix) operating income or net operating income, (xx) operating margin or profit margin, (xxi) operating profit or net operating profit, (xxii) process excellence, (xxiii) product cost reduction, (xxiv) product mix, (xxv) product release schedules, (xxvi) product ship targets, (xxvii) quality, (xxviii) return on assets or net assets, (xxix) return on capital, (xxx) return on capital employed, (xxxi) return on equity, (xxxii) return on invested capital, (xxxiii) return on operating revenue, (xxxiv) return on sales, (xxxv) revenue, (xxxvi) sales, (xxxvii) share price performance, (xxxviii) strategic alliances, (xxxix) total shareholder return and (xl) working capital. Performance goals may differ from participant-to-participant and from award-to-award.
The Administrator may choose to set target goals measured: (a) in absolute terms, (b) in relative terms, including (without limitation) the passage of time and/or against other companies or metrics, (c) on a per-share basis, (d) against the performance of Logitech as a whole or against particular segments or products of Logitech and/or (e) on a pre-tax or after-tax basis. The Administrator also will determine whether any element(s) will be included in or excluded from the calculations and whether or not such determinations result in any performance goal being measured on a basis other than generally accepted accounting principles. For example, the Administrator may decide to ignore the effect of (a) restructurings, discontinued operations, extraordinary items, and other unusual or non-recurring charges, (b) an event either not directly related to the operations of Logitech or not within the reasonable control of Logitechs management, or (c) the cumulative effects of tax or accounting changes in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.
Actual Awards
After the performance period ends, the Administrator certifies in writing the extent to which the pre-established performance goals actually were achieved with respect to executive officers. The actual award that is payable to a participant is determined using a formula that decreases the participants maximum award based on the level of actual performance attained. However, the Bonus Plan limits actual awards to a maximum of $10 million per person for any performance period, although this theoretical maximum is currently well above the maximum established for the fiscal year 2009 plan period. The maximum established for the fiscal year 2009 plan year is 300% of base salary per participant. The highest base salary in fiscal year 2009 for any of our executive officers is $787,500. As a result, the maximum award for the fiscal year 2009 bonus plan year is $2,362,500.
There can be no assurance that any awards will be paid, and we believe it is unlikely that the maximum payouts will be paid because, similar to our goal-setting for previous years, maximum performance targets reflect significant over-performance compared to the Companys historical financial performance. The actual award paid, if any, is likely to be lower depending on actual performance compared to the targeted performance goals associated with maximum payout.
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The Administrator has reserved the discretion to reduce or eliminate any actual award under the Bonus Plan. The Administrator may reduce the actual bonus payable to each participant based on objective or subjective factors, including factors that are non-financial and operational in nature. Also, unless determined otherwise by the Administrator, a participant will forfeit the bonus if a participant terminates employment before a bonus is paid. However, the Administrator has discretion to pay out part or the entire award upon the termination of a participants employment.
Actual awards will be generally paid in cash (or its equivalent) no later than two and one-half months after the performance period ends. However, the Bonus Plan also would allow the Administrator to make, in its sole discretion, the actual awards in the form of Logitech shares pursuant to Logitechs shareholder-approved employee equity incentive plans. Although the Administrator does not currently intend to do so, the Administrator also may pay bonuses to Bonus Plan participants outside of the Bonus Plan for the accomplishment of strategic or other individual goals.
Performance Based Compensation
The Bonus Plan is designed to qualify as performance based compensation under Section 162(m) of the U.S. Tax Code. Under Section 162(m), Logitech may not receive a U.S. federal income tax deduction for compensation paid to the Chief Executive Officer and any of the three most highly compensated executive officers, other than the Chief Financial Officer, to the extent that any of these persons receives more than $1 million in any one taxable year. However, if Logitech pays compensation that is performance based under Section 162(m), Logitech still can receive a U.S. federal income tax deduction for the compensation even if it is more than $1 million during a single year. The Bonus Plan allows Logitech to pay incentive compensation that is performance based and therefore fully tax deductible on Logitechs U.S. federal income tax return.
Amendment and Termination of the Bonus Plan
The Board or the Administrator may amend, suspend or terminate the Bonus Plan, or any part thereof, at any time and for any reason. No award may be granted during any period of suspension or after termination of the Bonus Plan.
Bonuses to Be Paid to Certain Individuals and Groups
Awards under the Bonus Plan are determined based on actual future performance. As a result, future actual awards cannot now be determined. However, the following table sets forth the awards that would be paid under the Bonus Plan to executive officers and other participants in the Bonus Plan in fiscal year 2009, using the same performance goals and achievement against those goals that were in effect under the fiscal year 2008 bonus program, but using fiscal year 2009 compensation levels.
Name of Individual or Group | Award | ||
Guerrino De Luca | $ | 578,600 | |
Chairman of the Board of Directors | |||
Gerald Quindlen | 828,450 | ||
President and Chief Executive Officer | |||
Mark Hawkins | 307,740 | ||
Senior Vice President, Finance and Information Technology, | |||
and Chief Financial Officer | |||
David Henry | 307,740 | ||
Senior Vice President, Customer Experience, Chief Marketing Officer |
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Name of Individual or Group | Award | |
Junien Labrousse | 505,512 | |
Executive Vice President, Products | ||
L. Joseph Sullivan | 189,550 | |
Senior Vice President, Worldwide Operations | ||
All executive officers, as a group | 2,717,592 | |
All non-executive members of the Board of Directors, as a group(1) | N/A | |
All employees who are not executive officers, as a group(2) | 12,197,530 |
(1) | This group is not eligible to participate in the Bonus Plan. | |
(2) | As of June 30, 2008 there were 181 employees who are not executive officers that were selected to participate in the fiscal year 2009 bonus program. Estimated payments for non-executive officers in FY 09 were calculated based on accruals for the FY 08 bonus program, adjusted for the increase in the number of participating employees in the bonus program in FY 09 over FY 08, and assuming the FY 09 performance funding is the same as that in FY 08. |
Actual awards paid, if any, to executive officers under the Bonus Plan for fiscal year 2009 will be calculated based on actual performance pursuant to the goals established by the Compensation Committee. For the 2009 performance period, the Compensation Committee selected performance goals based on a formula taking into account the participants base salaries and Logitechs net sales and operating income under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. The Compensation Committee also has discretion to further decrease, but not increase, the award otherwise indicated under the pre-established formula. Because our executive officers are eligible to receive awards under the Bonus Plan, our executive officers have an interest in this proposal.
Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions.
Recommendation
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR the proposal to approve the Management Performance Bonus Plan as it applies to Logitech executive officers.
Proposal 7
Release of the Board of Directors for Activities During Fiscal Year 2008
Proposal
The Board of Directors proposes that shareholders release the members of the Board of Directors for liability for activities during fiscal year 2008.
Explanation
As is customary for Swiss corporations and in accordance with Article 698, subsection 2, item 5 of the Swiss Code of Obligations, shareholders are requested to release the members of the Board of Directors from liability for their activities during fiscal year 2008. This release excludes liability claims brought by the Company or shareholders against the members of the Board of Directors for activities carried out during fiscal year 2008 relating to facts that have been disclosed to shareholders, except that registered shareholders that do not vote in favor of the proposal are not bound by the result for a period ending six months after the vote.
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Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions and not counting the votes of any member of the Board of Directors, any Logitech executive officers or any votes represented by Logitech.
Recommendation
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR the proposal to release the members of the Board of Directors for liability for activities during fiscal year 2008.
Proposal 8
Elections to the Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors is presently composed of nine members. Each director serves a three-year term, with the terms of the directors staggered so that not all directors are up for election in any one year. This is a recommended practice under the Swiss Code of Best Practice for Corporate Governance, in order to help ensure continuity among the Board.
At the recommendation of the Nominating Committee, the Board has nominated the three individuals below to serve as directors for the three-year term beginning as of the Annual General Meeting on September 10, 2008.
There will be a separate vote on each nominee.
If any director nominee is unable or unwilling to serve as a nominee at the time of the Annual General Meeting, registered shareholders at the meeting or represented at the meeting by the Independent Representative or third parties may vote either: (1) for a substitute nominee designated by the present Board to fill the vacancy; or (2) another substitute nominee. Under Swiss law Board members may only be appointed by shareholders and so if there is no substitute nominee and the individuals below are elected the Board will consist of ten members. The Board has no reason to believe that any of our nominees will be unwilling or unable to serve if elected as a director.
For further information on the Board of Directors, including the current members of the Board, the Committees of the Board, the means by which the Board exercises supervision of Logitechs executive officers, and other information, please see Corporate Governance and Board of Directors Matters below.
8.1 Election of Gerald Quindlen
Proposal: The Board of Directors proposes that the Companys President and Chief Executive Officer, Gerald Quindlen, be elected to the Board for a three-year term.
Gerald P. Quindlen became the President and Chief Executive Officer of Logitech in January 2008. Mr. Quindlen joined Logitech as Senior Vice President, Worldwide Sales and Marketing in October 2005. From August 1987 to September 2004, Mr. Quindlen worked for Eastman Kodak Company where he was Vice President of Global Sales and Operations for the Consumer and Professional Imaging Division, and previously held senior sales or marketing management positions in the United States, Japan and Asia Pacific. Prior to his 17 year tenure at Eastman Kodak, he worked for Mobil Oil Corporation in engineering. Mr. Quindlen holds a BS degree in chemical engineering from Villanova University in Pennsylvania, and an MBA degree in Finance from the University of Pennsylvanias Wharton School. He is 49 years old, and is a U.S. citizen.
The Board of Directors has determined that Mr. Quindlen would be a non-independent Director if elected.
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8.2 Election of Richard Laube
Proposal: The Board of Directors proposes that Richard Laube be elected to the Board for a three-year term.
Richard Laube is Executive Vice President of Nestlé S.A., Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé Nutrition and a member of the Nestlé Executive Board. He joined Nestlé in April 2005 as Deputy Executive Vice President, Corporate Business Development, and was appointed Deputy Executive Vice President, Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé Nutrition in November 2005. He was appointed Executive Vice President in 2008. Prior to joining Nestlé he served from 1999 to 2004 as President, Roche Consumer Health, and served on the Roche Corporate Executive Committee from 2001 to 2004. Previously, he was employed by Procter & Gamble from 1980 to 1998, serving in successively more senior roles in Switzerland, the United States, Japan, Germany and Brazil. Mr. Laube holds Masters and Bachelors of Art degrees in Organizational Development and Evaluation Research from Boston University. He is 52 years old and is a dual (Swiss US) citizen.
Mr. Laube serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Life Ventures S.A., Nutrition-Wellness Venture AG, The Gerber Life Insurance Company and Jenny Craig Affiliated Companies, all of which are Nestlé subsidiaries.
The Board of Directors has determined that Mr. Laube would be an independent Director if elected.
8.3 Re-election of Matthew Bousquette
Proposal: The Board of Directors proposes that Mr. Matthew Bousquette be re-elected to the Board for a further three-year term.
Matthew Bousquette has been a non-executive Director of the Company since June 2005. He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Enesco LLC, a U.S.-based producer of giftware and home and garden décor products. He is the former president of the Mattel Brands business unit of Mattel, Inc. Mr. Bousquette joined Mattel as senior vice president of marketing in December 1993, and was promoted to successively more senior positions at Mattel, including general manager of Boys Toys in July 1995, executive vice president of Boys Toys in May 1998, president of Boys/Entertainment in March 1999, and president of Mattel Brands from February 2003 to October 2005. Mr. Bousquettes previous experience included various positions at Lewis Galoob Toys, Teleflora and Procter & Gamble. Mr. Bousquette earned a BBA degree from the University of Michigan. He is 49 years old and is a U.S. citizen.
Mr. Bousquette has served on the Compensation Committee of the Board since June 2005 and has served as Chairman of the Committee since June 2006. The Board of Directors has determined that he is an independent Director.
Voting Requirement to Approve Proposals
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions.
Recommendation
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR the election to the Board of each of the above nominees.
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Proposal 9
Re-election of PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. as Auditors
Proposal
The Board of Directors proposes that PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. be re-elected as auditors of Logitech International S.A. and as group auditors for a one-year term.
Explanation
PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A., upon recommendation of the Audit Committee of the Board, is proposed for re-election for a further year in office as auditors for Logitech International S.A. and the Logitech group. They have been in charge of the Logitech audit since 1988. Information on the fees paid by Logitech to PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A., as well as further information regarding PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A., is set out below under the heading Independent Public Accountants and Report of the Audit Committee.
A member of PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. will be present at the Annual General Meeting, will have the opportunity to make a statement, and will be available to respond to appropriate questions you may ask.
Voting Requirement to Approve Proposal
The affirmative FOR vote of a majority of the votes cast in person or by proxy at the Annual General Meeting, not counting abstentions.
Recommendation
Our Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR the re-election of PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. as auditors of Logitech International S.A. and as group auditors for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BOARD OF DIRECTORS MATTERS
The Board of Directors is elected by the shareholders and holds the ultimate decision-making authority within Logitech, except for those matters reserved by law or by Logitechs Articles of Incorporation to its shareholders or for those that are delegated to the executive officers under the organizational regulations (also known as by-laws). The Board makes resolutions through a majority vote of the members present at the meetings. In the event of a tie, the vote of the Chairman decides.
Logitechs Articles of Incorporation set the minimum number of directors at three. We had nine members of the Board of Directors as of June 30, 2008. If all nominees to the Board set out in Proposal 8 are elected the size of the Board will increase to 10.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS INDEPENDENCE
Each of our directors other than Daniel Borel, Guerrino De Luca and Erh-Hsun Chang qualifies as independent in accordance with the published listing requirements of Nasdaq and Swiss corporate governance best practices guidelines. Of the director nominees standing for election at the 2008 Annual General Meeting, Matthew Bousquette and Richard Laube qualify as independent and Gerald Quindlen is not independent. The Nasdaq independence definition includes a series of objective tests, such as that the director is not an employee of the company and has not engaged in various types of business dealings with the company. In addition, as further required by Nasdaq rules, the Board has made a subjective determination as to each independent director that no relationships exist which, in the opinion of the Board, would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. In making these determinations, the directors reviewed and discussed information provided by the
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directors and the company with regard to each directors business and personal activities as they may relate to Logitech and Logitechs management. In particular, in determining that Richard Laube would be independent if elected, the Board of Directors took note that Mr. Borel, the Companys co-founder and former Chairman, is Chair of the Compensation Committee of Nestlé S.A., of which Mr. Laube is an executive officer. However, the Board considered that Mr. Borel is not currently an executive officer of the Company and that the Nestlé Compensation Committee makes compensation decisions with respect to executive officers within predetermined limits set by the full Nestlé Board. The Board also took into account Mr. Laubes professional reputation in determining that he would be independent if elected.
MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The current members of the Board of Directors are set out below.
Gary F.
Bengier |
Gary F. Bengier serves as Chair of the Bengier Foundation, a private charitable foundation. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of the Santa Fe Institute, a U.S. private, non-profit, multidisciplinary research and education center and he is also on the Board of Trustees of the San Francisco Exploratorium, dedicated to science education of children. Previously, Mr. Bengier served as Senior Vice President, Strategic Planning and Development of eBay Inc., from January 2001 until November 2001, and prior to that, as eBays Chief Financial Officer from November 1997 to January 2001. From February 1997 to October 1997, Mr. Bengier was Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Vxtreme, Inc., a U.S. developer of internet video streaming products. Prior to that time, Mr. Bengier was Corporate Controller at Compass Design Automation, a U.S. publisher of electronic circuit design software, from February 1993 to February 1997. Mr. Bengier has also held senior financial positions at Kenetech Corp., a U.S. energy services company, Qume Corp., a U.S. computer peripheral company, and Bio-Rad Laboratories, a U.S. life sciences company. He also spent several years as a management consultant for Touche Ross & Co., a U.S. consulting firm. Mr. Bengier holds a BBA degree in Computer Science and Operations Research from Kent State University and an MBA degree from Harvard Business School. |
Daniel Borel |
Daniel Borel is a Logitech founder and served from May 1988 until January 1, 2008 as the Chairman of the Board. From July 1992 to February 1998, he also served as Chief Executive Officer. He has held various other executive positions with Logitech. Mr. Borel holds an MS degree in Computer Science from Stanford University and a BE degree in Physics from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale, Lausanne, Switzerland. He serves on the Board of Nestlé S.A. In addition, he serves on the Board of Fondation Defitech, a Swiss foundation which contributes to research and development projects aimed at assisting the disabled, and is also Chairman of the Board of SwissUp, a Swiss educational foundation promoting higher learning. |
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Matthew
Bousquette 49 Years Old Director since 2005 Chairman, Enesco LLC U.S. national |
Matthew Bousquette has been a member of the Board of Directors since June 2005. He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Enesco LLC, a U.S.-based producer of giftware and home and garden décor products. He is the former president of the Mattel Brands business unit of Mattel, Inc. Mr. Bousquette joined Mattel as senior vice president of marketing in December 1993, and was promoted to successively more senior positions at Mattel, including general manager of Boys Toys in July 1995, executive vice president of Boys Toys in May 1998, president of Boys/Entertainment in March 1999, and president of Mattel Brands from February 2003 to October 2005. Mr. Bousquettes previous experience included various positions at Lewis Galoob Toys, Teleflora and Procter & Gamble. Mr. Bousquette earned a BBA degree from the University of Michigan. |
Erh-Hsun Chang |
Erh-Hsun Chang has been a member of the Board of Directors since June 2006. Until April 2006 Mr. Chang was the Companys Senior Vice President, Worldwide Operations and General Manager, Far East. Mr. Chang first joined Logitech in 1986 to establish its operations in Taiwan. After leaving the Company in 1988, he returned in 1995 as Vice President, General Manager, Far Eastern Area and Worldwide Operations. In April 1997, Mr. Chang was named Senior Vice President, General Manager, Far Eastern Area and Worldwide Operations. Mr. Changs other business experience includes tenure as Vice President, Manufacturing Consulting at KPMG Peat Marwick, a global professional services firm, between 1991 and 1995, and as Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Power Supply Division, of Taiwan Liton Electronics Ltd., a Taiwanese electronics company, in 1995. Mr. Chang holds a BS degree in Civil Engineering from Chung Yuang University, Taiwan, an MBA degree in Operations Management from the University of Dallas, and an MS degree in Industrial Engineering from Texas A&M University. Mr. Chang is also Vice Chairman of the Companys subsidiary in Taiwan. |
Kee-Lock
Chua 47 Years Old Director since 2000 Executive Director, Biosensors International Group, Ltd. Singapore national |
Kee-Lock Chua has been a member of the Board of Directors since June 2000. He is an Executive Director of Biosensors International Group, Ltd., a developer and manufacturer of medical devices used in interventional cardiology and critical care procedures. Previously, from 2003 to 2006, Mr. Chua was a managing director of Walden International, a U.S.-headquartered venture capital firm. From 2001 to 2003, Mr. Chua served as deputy president of NatSteel Ltd., a Singaporean industrial products company active in Asia Pacific. From 2000 until 2001, Mr. Chua was the president and chief executive officer of Intraco Ltd., a Singapore-listed trading and distribution company. Prior to joining Intraco, Mr. Chua was the president of MediaRing.com Ltd., a Singapore-listed company providing voice-over-Internet services. Mr. Chua holds a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, and an MS degree in Engineering from Stanford University. He also serves on the Board of Biosensors, Yongmao and BRC Asia Limited, all publicly traded companies in Singapore. |
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Sally Davis |
Sally Davis has been a member of the Board of Directors since June 2007. Ms. Davis became the chief executive of BT Wholesale in September 2007. Previously, she was the Chief Portfolio Officer of British Telecom from 2005 to 2007. She had previously held senior executive roles within BT since joining the company in 1999, including President, Global Products, Global Services from 2002 to 2005, President, BT Ignite Applications Hosting from 2001 to 2002 and Director, Group Internet and Multimedia from 1999 to 2001. Before joining BT, Ms. Davis held leading roles in several major communications companies, including Bell Atlantic in the United States and Mercury Communications in the United Kingdom. Ms. Davis is a member of the Board of Directors of the Henderson Smaller Companies Investment Trust plc, a U.K. managed investment trust. She holds a BA degree from University College, London. |
Guerrino De
Luca |
Guerrino De Luca became Chairman of the Logitech Board of Directors in January 2008. He served from February 1998 to January 1, 2008 as Logitechs President and Chief Executive Officer, and has been a director since June 1998. Prior to joining Logitech, Mr. De Luca served as Executive Vice President of Worldwide Marketing for Apple, Inc. from February 1997 to September 1997, and as President of Claris Corporation, a U.S. personal computing software vendor, from May 1994 to February 1997. Prior to joining Claris, Mr. De Luca held various positions with Apple in the United States and in Europe. Mr. De Luca holds a BS degree in Electronic Engineering from the University of Rome, Italy. |
Robert Malcolm |
Robert Malcolm has been a member of the Board of Directors since June 2007. He is the President, Global Marketing, Sales and Innovation at Diageo plc, the global premium drinks company. He joined Diageo in 1999 and his previous appointments at the company include Global Marketing Director and Global Scotch Whiskey Director at UDV, a Diageo company. He was appointed to his current position in 2000. Previous to his employment at Diageo, Mr. Malcolm held various posts at The Procter & Gamble Company from 1975 through 1999 including Vice President, General Manager Beverages, Europe, Middle East and Africa; Vice President, General Manager Arabian Peninsula, and Vice President, General Manager, Personal Cleaning Products USA. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Ad Council, a private, non-profit organization that is the leading producer of public service advertisements in the United States. He holds a BS degree and an MBA degree in Business from the University of Southern California. |
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Monika Ribar 48 Years Old Director since 2004 President and CEO, Panalpina Group Swiss national |
Monika Ribar has been a member of the Board of Directors since June 2004. Since October 2006 Ms. Ribar has served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Panalpina Group, a Swiss freight forwarding and logistics services provider. She has been a member of Panalpinas Executive Board since February 2000, and served as Panalpinas Chief Financial Officer from June 2005 to October 2006, and as its Chief Information Officer from February 2000 to June 2005. From June 1995 to February 2000, she served as Panalpinas Corporate Controller, and from 1991 to 1995 served in project management positions at Panalpina. Prior to joining Panalpina, Ms. Ribar worked at Fides Group (now KPMG Switzerland), a professional services firm, serving as Head of Strategic Planning, and was employed by the BASF Group, a German chemical products company. Ms. Ribar holds a Masters degree in Economics and Business Administration from the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland. Ms. Ribar also serves as a Director of Julius Baer Holding A.G. |
Other than the current employment and involvement noted above, no other Logitech Board member currently has material supervisory, management, or advisory functions outside Logitech. None of the Companys directors holds any official functions or political posts.
CHANGES TO THE BOARD
At the Annual General Meeting shareholders will be asked to elect two new directors, Mr. Richard Laube and Mr. Gerald Quindlen, to three-year terms, and will be asked to re-elect Mr. Bousquette for a three-year term. Mr. Quindlen is the Companys President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Bengier is retiring from the Board after his three-year term of office expires at the 2008 Annual General Meeting, having served a total of six years on Logitechs Board. If all nominees are elected, the size of Logitechs Board will increase from nine to ten members.
ELECTIONS TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Directors are elected at the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, upon proposal of the Board of Directors. The proposals of the Board of Directors are made following recommendations of the Nominating Committee.
Shareholder Recommendations and Nominees
Under our Articles of Incorporation, one or more registered shareholders who together represent shares representing at least the lesser of (i) one percent of our issued share capital or (ii) an aggregate par value of one million Swiss francs may demand that an item be placed on the agenda of a meeting of shareholders, including a nominee for election to the Board of Directors. A request to place an item on the meeting agenda must be in writing, describe the proposal and be received by our Board of Directors at least 60 days prior to the date of the meeting. Demands by registered shareholders to place an item on the agenda of a meeting of shareholders should be sent to: Secretary to the Board of Directors, Logitech International S.A., CH 1143 Apples, Switzerland, or c/o Logitech Inc., 6505 Kaiser Drive, Fremont, CA 94555, USA.
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Under the Companys Articles of Incorporation only registered shareholders are recognized as shareholders of the company. As a result, beneficial shareholders do not have a right to place an item on the agenda of a meeting, regardless of the number of shares they hold. For information on how beneficial shareholders may become registered shareholders, see Questions and Answers about the Logitech 2008 Annual General Meeting - If I am not a registered shareholder, can I attend and vote at the meeting?
If the agenda of a general meeting of shareholders includes an item calling for the election of directors, any registered shareholder may propose a candidate for election to the Board of Directors before or at the meeting.
The Nominating Committee does not have a policy on consideration of recommendations for candidates to the Board of Directors from registered shareholders. The Nominating Committee would consider any such recommendations on a case-by-case basis in their discretion, and, if accepted for consideration, would evaluate any such properly submitted nominee in consideration of the membership criteria set forth under Director Qualifications below. Shareholder recommendations to the Board of Directors should be sent to the above address.
Director Qualifications
The Nominating Committee has not formally established any specific, minimum qualifications that must be met by each candidate for the Board of Directors or specific qualities or skills that are necessary for one or more of the members of the Board of Directors to possess. However, the Nominating Committee, when considering a potential non-incumbent candidate, will factor into its determination the following qualities of a candidate: professional experience including whether the person is a current or former CEO or CFO of a public company or the head of a division of a large international organization, geographic location, educational background, knowledge of our business, integrity, professional reputation, independence, wisdom, and ability to represent the best interests of our shareholders.
Identification and Evaluation of Nominees for Directors
Our Nominating Committee uses a variety of methods for identifying and evaluating nominees for director. Our Nominating Committee regularly assesses the appropriate size and composition of the Board of Directors, the needs of the Board of Directors and the respective committees of the Board of Directors and the qualifications of candidates in light of these needs. Candidates may come to the attention of the Nominating Committee through shareholders, management, current members of the Board of Directors or search firms. The evaluation of these candidates may be based solely upon information provided to the committee or may also include discussions with persons familiar with the candidate, an interview of the candidate or other actions the committee deems appropriate, including the use of paid third parties to review candidates. Mr. Richard Laube, one of the nominees for election to the Board at the September 2008 Annual General Meeting, was identified as a potential nominee to the Board by a third party executive search firm retained by the Company at the direction of the Nominating Committee.
TERMS OF OFFICE OF DIRECTORS
Each director is elected individually by a separate vote of shareholders for a term of three years and is eligible for re-election until their seventieth birthday. Directors may not seek re-election after they have reached 70 years of age, unless the Board of Directors adopts a resolution to the contrary. A member of the Board who reaches 70 years of age during the term of his or her directorship may remain a director until the expiration of the term. A directors term of office as Chairman coincides with their term of office as a director. A director may be indefinitely re-elected as Chairman, subject to the age limit mentioned above.
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Although the Companys Articles of Incorporation and Organizational Regulations do not explicitly require this, the terms of office of the directors are staggered. Consequently, all directors will not run for re-election at a single annual general meeting.
The year of appointment and remaining term of office as of March 31, 2008 for each Director are as follows:
Name | Year First Appointed | Year Current Term Expires | ||
Gary Bengier(1)(4) | 2002 | Annual General Meeting 2008 | ||
Daniel Borel(1) | 1988 | Annual General Meeting 2010 | ||
Matthew Bousquette(1)(3) | 2005 | Annual General Meeting 2008 | ||
Erh-Hsun Chang(1) | 2006 | Annual General Meeting 2009 | ||
Kee-Lock Chua(1) | 2000 | Annual General Meeting 2009 | ||
Sally Davis(2) | 2007 | Annual General Meeting 2010 | ||
Guerrino De Luca(2) | 1998 | Annual General Meeting 2010 | ||
Robert Malcolm(1) | 2007 | Annual General Meeting 2010 | ||
Monika Ribar(1) | 2004 | Annual General Meeting 2010 |
(1) | Non-executive member of the Board of Directors. | |
(2) | Executive member of the Board of Directors. | |
(3) |
The term of Mr. Bousquette expires at the 2008 Annual General Meeting, and he is being presented for re-election to the Board of Directors at that meeting. | |
(4) | Mr. Bengier will retire from the Board at the expiration of his current term. |
THE FUNCTIONING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The Board of Directors is responsible for supervising the management of the business and affairs of the Company.
Chairman and Secretary
At the last Board meeting prior to each Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, the Board of Directors appoints a Chairman and a Secretary. It is not mandatory that the Secretary be a member of the Board of Directors or a shareholder. As of March 31, 2008, the Chairman was Mr. Guerrino De Luca and the Secretary was Ms. Catherine Valentine, the Companys Vice President, Legal and General Counsel.
Lead Independent Director
As appointed by the Board, Mr. Bengier serves as Lead Independent Director. The responsibilities of the Lead Independent Director include chairing meetings of the non-executive directors and serving as the presiding director in performing such other functions as the Board may direct.
Board Meetings
The Chairman sets the agenda for Board meetings. Any member of the Board of Directors may request that a meeting of the Board be convened. The directors receive materials in advance of Board meetings allowing them to prepare for the handling of the items on the agenda.
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The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer recommend executive officers or other members of senior management who, at the invitation of the Board, attend portions of each quarterly Board meeting to report on areas of the business within their responsibility. Infrequently, the Board may also receive reports from external consultants such as executive search or succession experts or outside legal experts to assist the Board on matters it is considering.
Each regularly scheduled quarterly Board meeting lasts a full day and all directors participate in person except in special individual circumstances. Special meetings of the Board may be held by telephone or video-conference and the duration of such meetings varies depending on the subject matters considered.
Emergency Resolutions
In case of emergency, the Chairman of the Board may have the power to pass resolutions which would otherwise be the responsibility of the Board. Decisions by the Chairman of the Board made in this manner are subject to ratification by the Board of Directors at its next meeting or by way of written consent. No such emergency resolutions were passed during fiscal year 2008.
Executive Sessions
The Board of Directors has adopted a policy of regularly scheduled executive sessions where the independent directors meet in closed session to consider matters without management or non-independent directors present. During fiscal year 2008, executive sessions of the independent directors were held four times.
Board Effectiveness
Our Board of Directors performs an annual self-assessment to evaluate its effectiveness in fulfilling its obligations.
BOARD COMMITTEES
The Board has standing Audit, Compensation, Board Compensation and Nominating Committees to assist the Board in carrying out its duties. At each quarterly Board meeting each applicable Board Committee reports to the full Board on the substance of the Committees meetings, if any, during the quarter.
Each Committee has a written charter approved by the Board. Their chairs determine the meeting agendas. The Board Committee members receive materials in advance of Committee meetings allowing them to prepare for the meeting. The Charters of each Board Committee are available on Logitechs Investor Relations website at http://ir.logitech.com. Each of the Audit, Compensation and Nominating Committees has the authority to engage outside experts, advisors and counsel to the extent it considers appropriate to assist the committee in its work. The current members of the committees are identified in the following table.
Board | |||||||||
Director | Audit | Compensation | Nominating | Compensation | |||||
Gary F. Bengier | X | X | |||||||
Daniel Borel | X | ||||||||
Matthew Bousquette | Chair | ||||||||
Erh-Hsun Chang | |||||||||
Kee-Lock Chua | X | X | |||||||
Sally Davis | X | ||||||||
Guerrino De Luca | Chair | Chair | |||||||
Robert Malcolm | X | ||||||||
Monika Ribar | Chair |
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Attendance at Board, Committee and Annual Shareholders Meetings
In fiscal year 2008 the Board met seven times, four of which were regularly scheduled quarterly meetings and three of which were special meetings. In addition, the Audit Committee met nine times, the Compensation Committee met three times and the Nominating Committee met four times. The Board Compensation Committee did not meet. We expect each director to attend each meeting of the Board and the committees on which he or she serves, and also expect them to attend the Annual General Meeting of shareholders. Each director attended the 2007 Annual General Meeting. All directors attended at least 75% of the meetings of the Board and the Committees on which he or she served, except Daniel Borel. Detailed attendance information for Board and Board Committee meetings during fiscal year 2008 is as follows:
Board | |||||||||||||
Board of | Audit | Compensation | Nominating | Compensation | |||||||||
Directors | Committee | Committee | Committee | Committee | |||||||||
Number of meetings held | 7 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||
Gary Bengier | 7 | 9 | n/a | 3 | |||||||||
Daniel Borel | 5 | n/a | n/a | 2 | (1) | ||||||||
Matthew Bousquette | 7 | n/a | 3 | n/a | |||||||||
Erh-Hsun Chang | 7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | |||||||||
Kee-Lock Chua | 7 | 3 | (3) | 3 | 4 | ||||||||
Sally Davis | 5 | (4) | 6 | (4) | n/a | n/a | |||||||
Guerrino De Luca | 7 | n/a | n/a | 2 | (2) | ||||||||
Robert Malcom | 4 | (4) | n/a | 3 | (4) | n/a | |||||||
Monika Ribar | 7 | 9 | n/a | n/a |
(1) | Member until January 1, 2008 | |
(2) | Member after January 1, 2008 | |
(3) | Member until June 20, 2007 | |
(4) | Member after June 20, 2007 |
Audit Committee
The Audit Committee is appointed by the Board to assist the Board in monitoring the Companys financial accounting, controls, planning and reporting. It is composed of only non-executive, independent Board members. Among its duties, the Audit Committee:
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In fiscal year 2008, the Audit Committee was composed of Ms. Ribar (Chair), Mr. Bengier and Ms. Davis. Mr. Chua was also a member until June 2007, and Mr. Bengier served as Chair until June 2007. The Board of Directors has determined that each member of the Audit Committee meets the independence requirements of the Nasdaq Stock Market listing standards and the applicable rules and regulations of the SEC. In addition, the Board has determined that Mr. Bengier and Ms. Ribar are audit committee financial experts as defined by the applicable rules and regulations of the SEC.
The Audit Committee met nine times in fiscal year 2008. Four meetings were held in person on the day prior to the regularly scheduled quarterly Board meeting, for two to three hours, and five were held by telephone before publication of the quarterly financial results and the annual report, for approximately an hour. The Committee received reports and presentations before the meetings in order to allow them time to prepare adequately. At the Committees invitation, the Companys Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Controller and General Counsel attended each meeting, and representatives from the Companys external auditors also attended each meeting. In addition, the Companys head of Internal Audit participated in six meetings, and other members of the Companys finance department also participated in certain meetings. Two meetings also included separate sessions with representatives of the external auditors, and with the head of Internal Audit.
Compensation Committee
The Compensation Committee reviews and approves or recommends to the Board for approval the compensation of executive officers and Logitechs compensation policies and programs, including share-based compensation programs and other incentive-based compensation. Within the guidelines established by the Board and the limits set forth in the Companys employee equity plans, the Compensation Committee also has the authority to grant options to employees without further Board approval. The Committee is composed of only non-executive, independent Board members.
In fiscal year 2008, the Compensation Committee consisted of Mr. Bousquette, Chairman, Mr. Chua and Mr. Malcolm, who each meet the independence requirements of the Nasdaq Stock Market listing standards.
The Compensation Committee met three times in fiscal year 2008. At the Committees invitation, the Companys Vice President of Human Resources attended each meeting. In addition, the Companys Director, Worldwide Compensation & Benefits, and Director, Corporate & Securities Law each attended one meeting, and a representative of the Committees independent compensation consultant attended one meeting. All meetings were held in person and lasted approximately one hour and a half. In addition to its regular meetings, typically each month the Committee considers option grants to the Companys employees for approval by consent. The Committee took seven such actions by consent during fiscal year 2008.
Please refer to the Companys Compensation Report for further information on the Compensation Committees criteria and process for evaluating executive compensation.
Board Compensation Committee
The Board Compensation Committee establishes the compensation of the non-executive directors. This Committee consists of Mr. De Luca, Chairman of the Board, and Mr. Borel, Logitechs co-founder and Chairman until January 1, 2008. The Board Compensation Committee did not meet in fiscal year 2008.
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Nominating Committee
The Nominating Committee is composed of at least three members, with the Chairman of the Board acting as chair for this Committee and the other two members being non-executive, independent directors. Among its duties, the Nominating Committee:
The Nominating Committee may and typically does retain an executive search firm to assist with the identification and evaluation of prospective Board nominees based on criteria established by the Committee. For information on the Nominating Committees policies with respect to director nominations please see Elections to the Board of Directors, above.
The Nominating Committee consists of Mr. De Luca, Chairman, Mr. Bengier and Mr. Chua as of March 31, 2008. Until January 1, 2008 the Committee consisted of Mr. Borel, Chairman, Mr. Bengier and Mr. Chua. Each of Mr. Borel and Mr. De Luca are not independent directors under applicable Nasdaq rules. Upon the Committees recommendation of nominees for election to the Board of Directors, the nominees are presented to the full Board. Nominees are then selected by a majority of the independent members of the Board. The Nominating Committee met four times in fiscal year 2008. Two meetings were held in person and two by teleconference, and each meeting lasted approximately one hour.
ROLE OF EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS AND THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Guerrino De Luca, the Companys Chairman, is currently the only executive member of the Board of Directors. Mr. De Luca assumes a leading role in mid- and long-term strategic planning and the selection of top-level management, and he supports major transaction initiatives of Logitech.
If elected to the Board of Directors at the Annual General Meeting, Gerald Quindlen will also be an executive member of the Board of Directors. He is Logitechs President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Quindlen manages the day-to-day operations of Logitech, with the support of the other executive officers. The Chief Executive Officer has, in particular, the following powers and duties:
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ALLOCATION OF POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES BETWEEN THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
The Board of Directors has delegated the management of the Company to the Chief Executive Officer and the executive officers, except where Swiss law or the Companys Articles of Incorporation or Organizational Regulations (By-Laws) provide differently.
The Board of Directors has the responsibility for supervision and control of Company management. In addition to the non-transferable powers and duties of boards of directors under Swiss law, the Logitech Board of Directors also has the following responsibilities:
The detailed authorities and responsibilities of the Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer and the executive officers are set out in the Companys Articles of Incorporation and Organizational Regulations. Please refer to http://ir.logitech.com for copies of these documents.
Means by which the Board of Directors Supervises Executive Officers
The Board of Directors is regularly informed on developments and issues in Logitechs business, and monitors the activities and responsibilities of the executive officers in various ways.
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COMPENSATION COMMITTEE INTERLOCKS AND INSIDER PARTICIPATION
None of the members of the Compensation Committee has been an officer or employee of Logitech. None of our executive officers serves on the board of directors or compensation committee of a company that has an executive officer that serves on our Board of Directors.
COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Shareholders may contact the Board of Directors about bona fide issues or questions about Logitech by sending an email to generalcounsel@logitech.com or by writing the Corporate Secretary at the following address:
Logitech International S.A.
Attn:
Corporate Secretary
Moulin du Choc D
1122
Romanel-sur-Morges, Switzerland
SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN
BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT
AS OF JUNE 30, 2008
In accordance with the proxy statement rules under U.S. securities laws, the following table shows the number of our shares beneficially owned as of June 30, 2008 by:
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Total as a | |||||||||||
Number | Options | Total | Percentage | ||||||||
of Shares | Exercisable | Beneficial | of Shares | ||||||||
Beneficial Owner | Owned(1) | Within 60 Days(2) | Ownership | Outstanding(3) | |||||||
5% Shareholders: | |||||||||||
Entities affiliated with Fidelity(4) | 9,006,810 | | 9,006,810 | 5.0 | % | ||||||
Thornburg Investment Management(5) | 11,922,284 | | 11,922,284 | 6.7 | % | ||||||
Directors, not including the Chairman: | |||||||||||
Gary Bengier | 5,100 | 60,000 | 65,100 | * | |||||||
Daniel Borel | 11,150,000 | | 11,150,000 | 6.2 | % | ||||||
Matthew Bousquette | 10,000 | 60,000 | 70,000 | * | |||||||
Erh-Hsun Chang(6) | 148,000 | 435,000 | 583,000 | * | |||||||
Kee-Lock Chua | 10,051 | 130,000 | 140,051 | * | |||||||
Sally Davis | 2,672 | 10,000 | 12,672 | * | |||||||
Richard Laube (Board Nominee) | 53,000 | | 53,000 | * | |||||||
Robert Malcolm | 4,278 | 10,000 | 14,278 | * | |||||||
Monika Ribar | 1,400 | 85,000 | 86,400 | * | |||||||
Executive Officers: | |||||||||||
Guerrino De Luca | 328,036 | 2,533,124 | 2,861,160 | 1.6 | % | ||||||
Gerald Quindlen | | 115,000 | 115,000 | * | |||||||
Mark Hawkins | 3,279 | | 3,279 | * | |||||||
David Henry(7) | 18,346 | 384,548 | 402,894 | * | |||||||
Junien Labrousse(7) | 23,340 | 332,500 | 355,840 | * | |||||||
L. Joseph Sullivan | 1,983 | | 1,983 | * | |||||||
Current Directors and Executive Officers, | |||||||||||
as a Group(15) | 11,759,485 | 4,155,172 | 15,914,657 | 8.9 | % |
* |
Less than 1% | |
(1) | Each director or executive officer has sole voting and investment power over the shares reported in accordance with SEC rules, subject to community property laws where applicable. Unless otherwise noted below, the address of each beneficial owner that is a director or a nominee for director is c/o Logitech International S.A., Moulin du Choc D, Romanel-sur-Morges, Switzerland, and the address of each beneficial owner that is an executive officer is c/o Logitech Inc., 6505 Kaiser Drive, Fremont, California, 94555. | |
(2) | Includes shares represented by vested, unexercised options as of June 30, 2008 and options that are expected to vest within 60 days after June 30, 2008. These shares are deemed to be outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of the person holding the options, but are not treated as outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person. | |
(3) | Based on 178,687,306 shares outstanding on June 30, 2008. | |
(4) | Based solely on information supplied by FMR LLC in a notification to the Company on November 29, 2007 provided under Swiss law reporting ownership of Logitechs shares as of November 28, 2007. According to the notification direct and indirect subsidiaries of FMR LLC hold 9,006,810 shares as of such date on behalf of funds managed by and clients of direct and indirect subsidiaries of FMR LLC. FMR LLC is the parent holding company of Fidelity Management & Research Company, investment manager for US mutual funds, and Fidelity Management & Trust Company, a US state chartered bank which acts as a trustee or investment manager of various pension and trust accounts. The address of the entities affiliated with Fidelity is 82 Devonshire Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02109. |
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(5) | Based solely on information supplied by Thornburg Investment Management in a notification to the Company on May 22, 2008 provided under Swiss law reporting ownership of Logitechs shares as of April 25, 2008. According to the notification Thornburg Investment Management holds 11,922,284 shares as of such date as an investment manager on behalf of its investment clients. The address of Thornburg is 119 East Marcy Street, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501. | |
(6) | Includes 30,000 shares issuable upon options that are exercisable within 60 days after June 30, 2008. | |
(7) | Includes 40,000 shares issuable upon options that are exercisable within 60 days after June 30, 2008. |
DIRECTOR SHARE OWNERSHIP GUIDELINES
The Board of Directors adopted share ownership guidelines for members of the Board of Directors effective June 2006. Directors are required to own at least 5,000 Logitech shares. Directors are required to achieve the guideline within three years of joining the Board, or, in the case of directors serving at the time the guidelines were adopted, within three years of the effective date of adoption of the guidelines. The guidelines will be adjusted to reflect any share splits or other capital adjustments, and will be re-evaluated by the Board from time to time. As of June 30, 2008, each director had either satisfied these ownership guidelines or had time remaining to do so.
CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
OUR POLICIES
It is our policy that all employees must not engage in any activities which could conflict with Logitechs business interests, which could adversely affect its reputation or which could interfere with the fulfillment of the responsibilities of the employees job, which at all times must be performed in the best interest of Logitech. In addition, Logitech employees may not use their position with Logitech, or Logitechs information or assets, for their personal gain or for the improper benefit of others. These policies are included in our Conflict of Interest and Business Ethics Policy, which covers our directors, executive officers and other employees. If in a particular circumstance the Board concludes that there is or may be a perceived conflict of interest, the Board will instruct our Legal department to work with our relevant business units to determine if there is a conflict of interest. Any waivers to these conflict rules with regard to a director or executive officer require the prior approval of the Audit Committee.
NASDAQ RULES AND SWISS BEST CORPORATE GOVERNANCE PRACTICES
Nasdaq rules defining independent director status also govern conflict of interest situations, as do Swiss best corporate governance principles published by economiesuisse, a leading Swiss business organization. As discussed above, each of our directors other than Mr. Borel, Mr. De Luca and Mr. Chang qualifies as independent in accordance with the Nasdaq rules. If elected by shareholders, Mr. Laube will also qualify as independent and Mr. Quindlen will be not independent. The Nasdaq rules include a series of objective tests that would not allow a director to be considered independent if the director has or has had certain employment, business or family relationships with the company. The Nasdaq independence definition also includes a requirement that the Board review the relations between each independent director and the company on a subjective basis. In accordance with that review, the Board has made a subjective determination as to each independent director that no relationships exist that, in the opinion of the Board, would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director.
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SEC RULES
In addition to the Logitech and Nasdaq policies and rules described above, the SEC has specific disclosure requirements covering certain types of transactions involving Logitech and a director or executive officer or persons and entities affiliated with them. There were no such transactions in fiscal year 2008 that require disclosure. Since April 1, 2007, we have not been a party to, and we have no plans to be a party to, any transaction or series of similar transactions in which the amount involved exceeded or will exceed $120,000 and in which any current director, executive officer, holder of more than 5% of our shares, or any member of the immediate family of any of the foregoing, had or will have a direct or indirect material interest other than in connection with the following transactions: We have entered into an indemnification agreement with each of our directors and executive officers. The indemnification agreements require us to indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by Swiss and California law.
None of the following persons has been indebted to Logitech or its subsidiaries at any time since the beginning of fiscal year 2008: any of our directors or executive officers; any nominee for election as a director; any member of the immediate family of any of our directors, executive officers or nominees for director; any corporation or organization of which any of our directors, executive officers or nominees is an executive officer or partner or is, directly or indirectly, the beneficial owner of 10% or more of any class of equity securities (except trade debt entered into in the ordinary course of business); and any trust or other estate in which any of the directors, executive officers or nominees for director has a substantial beneficial interest or for which such person serves as a trustee or in a similar capacity.
INDEPENDENT PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
Under Logitechs Articles of Incorporation the shareholders elect the Companys independent auditors each year at the annual general meeting. Re-election is permitted.
Logitechs consolidated and statutory auditors are currently PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A., Lausanne, Switzerland. PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. assumed its first audit mandate for Logitech in 1988. They were re-elected by the shareholders as Logitechs consolidated and statutory auditors at the Annual General Meeting in June 2007. For purposes of U.S. securities law reporting, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP of San Jose, California, serves as the Companys independent registered public accounting firm, and provided an opinion to shareholders on Logitechs consolidated financial statements filed with the SEC on Logitechs Annual Report on Form 10-K for fiscal year 2008. Together, PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A. and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP are referred to as PwC.
As appointed by the Board, the Audit Committee is responsible for supervising the performance of the Companys independent auditors, and recommends the election or replacement of the independent auditors to the Board of Directors.
Representatives of PwC are invited to attend all regular meetings of the Audit Committee. During fiscal year 2008, PwC representatives attended all nine Audit Committee meetings. The Committee twice met separately with representatives of PwC in closed sessions of Committee meetings.
On a quarterly basis, PwC reports on the findings of their audit and/or review work including their audit of Logitechs internal controls over financial reporting. These reports include their assessment of critical accounting policies and practices used, alternative treatments of financial information discussed with management, and other material written communication between PwC and management. At each quarterly Board meeting the Audit Committee reports to the full Board on the substance of the Committee meetings during the quarter. On an annual basis, the Audit Committee approves PwCs audit plan and evaluates the performance of PwC and its senior representatives in fulfilling its responsibilities. Moreover, the Audit Committee recommends to the Board the appointment or replacement of the independent auditors, subject to shareholder approval. The Audit Committee reviews the annual report provided by PwC as to its independence.
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For additional information concerning the Audit Committee and its activities with PwC, see The Board, Board Committees and Meetings and Report of the Audit Committee.
AUDIT AND NON-AUDIT FEES
In addition to the audit services PwC provides with respect to Logitechs annual audited consolidated financial statements and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, PwC has provided non-audit services to Logitech in the past and may provide them in the future. Non-audit services are services other than those provided in connection with an audit or a review of Logitechs financial statements. The Audit Committee of the Board of Directors determined that the rendering of non-audit services by PwC was compatible with maintaining their independence.
During fiscal year 2008, PwC performed the following non-audit services that were approved by the Audit Committee: tax planning and compliance advice, consultations regarding share-based compensation and expatriate tax services.
The following table sets forth the aggregate fees billed to us for the audit and other services provided by PwC during the fiscal years ended March 31, 2007 and 2008 (in thousands):
2008 | 2007 | ||||
Audit fees(1) | $ | 2,956 | $ | 3,380 | |
Audit-related fees(2) | 39 | 55 | |||
Tax fees(3) | 835 | 407 | |||
All other fees(4) | 27 | 7 | |||
Total | $ | 3,857 | $ | 3,849 |
(1) | Audit fees. This category represent fees for professional services provided in connection with the audit of our financial statements, the audit of our internal control over financial reporting, and review of our quarterly financial statements and audit services provided in connection with other statutory or regulatory filings. | |
(2) | Audit-related fees. This category represents consultation on issues such as acquisition accounting, review and testing of the impact of new accounting pronouncements, and other topics. | |
(3) | Tax fees. This category represents fees for tax compliance, assistance with tax audits, tax advice and tax planning. | |
(4) | All other fees. This category primarily represents export compliance services. |
PRE-APPROVAL PROCEDURES AND POLICIES
The Audit Committee pre-approves all audit and non-audit services provided by PwC. This pre-approval must occur before the auditor is engaged. The Audit Committee pre-approves categories of non-audit services and a target fee associated with each category. Usage of PwC fees against the target is presented to the Audit Committee at each in-person quarterly meeting, with additional amounts requested as needed. Services that last longer than a year must be re-approved by the Audit Committee.
The Audit Committee can delegate the pre-approval ability to a single independent member of the Audit Committee. The delegate must communicate all services approved at the next scheduled Audit Committee meeting. The Audit Committee or its delegate can pre-approve types of services to be performed by PwC with a set dollar limit per type of service. The Vice President, Corporate Controller is responsible for ensuring that the work performed is within the scope and dollar limit as approved by the Audit Committee. Management must report to the Audit Committee the status of each project or service provided by PwC.
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REPORT OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE
The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing Logitechs accounting and financial reporting processes and audits of Logitechs financial statements. The Audit Committee acts only in an oversight capacity and relies on the work and assurances of management, which has primary responsibility for Logitechs financial statements and reports, Logitechs internal auditors, as well as PwC, Logitechs independent auditors, which is responsible for expressing an opinion on the conformity of Logitechs audited financial statements to generally accepted accounting principles.
The Board of Directors has adopted a written charter for the Audit Committee. A copy of the Charter can be found on our website at http://ir.logitech.com. To view the charter, select Audit Committee Charter under Corporate Governance.
In performing its responsibilities, the Committee has reviewed and discussed, with management and the independent auditors, the audited consolidated financial statements in Logitechs Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008. The Audit Committee has also discussed with the independent auditors matters required to be discussed by Statement on Auditing Standards No. 61, Communications with Audit Committees.
Pursuant to Independence Standards Board Standard No. 1, Independence Discussions with Audit Committees, the Committee received written disclosures and the letter from the independent auditors, and discussed with the auditors their independence.
Based on the reviews and discussions referred to above, the Committee recommended to the Board of Directors that the audited consolidated financial statements be included in Logitechs Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008.
Submitted by the Audit Committee of the Board
Monika Ribar, Chairman
Gary
Bengier
Sally Davis
SECTION 16(a) BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP REPORTING COMPLIANCE
Effective April 1, 2008, Section 16(a) of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (Exchange Act), requires our directors and executive officers, among others, to file with the SEC and NASDAQ an initial report of ownership of our shares on Form 3 and reports of changes in ownership on Form 4 or Form 5. Persons subject to Section 16 are required by SEC regulations to furnish us with copies of all Section 16(a) forms that they file. Under SEC rules, certain forms of indirect ownership and ownership of company shares by certain family members are covered by these reporting requirements. As a matter of practice, our administrative staff assists our executive officers and directors in preparing initial ownership reports and reporting ownership changes, and typically files these reports on their behalf. Our executive officers and directors were not subject to Section 16(a) during fiscal year 2008.
COMPENSATION DISCLOSURE AND ANALYSIS AND COMPENSATION REPORT
Pursuant to interpretative guidance provided by the SEC with respect to Item 402 of Regulation S-K on August 8, 2007, our Compensation Disclosure and Analysis, Report of the Compensation Committee, and information regarding the compensation of our directors and executive officers, are not included in this preliminary Invitation and Proxy Statement. Such information will be included in our definitive Invitation and Proxy Statement, which we expect to file with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 29, 2008.
*****
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This Response Coupon is
solicited |
Response
Coupon | |
«Domiziladresse» |
||
«AktNr» «Barcode» |
o |
Option 1: I/we will personally attend the Annual General Meeting and ask you to send me/us an admission card in my/our name (s). |
||||
o |
Option 2: I/we hereby authorize the person named below to act as my/our proxy to represent me/us at the Annual General Meeting and ask you to send an admission card directly to such person |
||||
Name and address of proxy: | |||||
o |
Option 3: To represent me/us with substitution right, I/we hereby authorize and appoint as my/our proxy: |
o |
Logitech International S.A. |
If you appoint either Logitech International S.A. or the Independent Representative to represent you at the Annual General Meeting, please provide your voting instructions by marking the applicable instruction boxes below. If you do not provide specific voting instructions, your voting rights will be exercised in favor of the proposals of the Board of Directors. | ||
o |
The Independent Representative |
Proposals 1 to 9 |
FOR |
AGAINST |
ABST. |
FOR |
AGAINST |
ABST. | ||||
1. |
Approval of the annual report, the compensation report, the consolidated financial statements and the statutory financial statements of Logitech International S.A. for fiscal year 2008 |
o | o | o | 7. |
Release of the Board of Directors for liability for activities during fiscal year 2008 |
o | o | o | |
2. |
Appropriation of retained earnings without payment of a dividend for fiscal year 2008 |
o | o | o | 8. |
Election of Directors |
||||
3. |
Decrease of conditional capital for employee equity incentive plans |
o | o | o | 8.1 |
Election of Gerald Quindlen |
o | o | o | |
4. |
Increase of shares available for issuance under Employee Share Purchase Plans |
o | o | o | 8.2 |
Election of Richard Laube |
o | o | o | |
5. |
Authorization of conditional capital for future convertible bond issuance |
o | o | o | 8.3 |
Re-election of Matthew Bousquette |
o | o | o | |
6. |
Approval of Logitech Management Performance Bonus Plan |
o | o | o | 9. |
Re-election of PricewaterhouseCoopers SA as auditors |
o | o | o | |
If voting takes place on proposals that have not been submitted before the Annual General Meeting, I/we hereby authorize Logitech International S.A. or the Independent Representative, as applicable, to vote in favor of the proposal of the Board of Directors. |
o | o | o |
Date: | Signature: |
Please complete and return this form by September 2nd, 2008 in the appropriate enclosed postage paid return envelope to: | |||
- |
Logitech International S.A., Shareholders Department, Moulin du Choc D, CH-1122 Romanel-sur-Morges, or |
||
- |
Ms. Beatrice Ehlers, Notary Public, Place St-François 11, P.O. Box CH-1002 Lausanne |